Locals have mixed luck reaching loved ones in Chile

Brian Hiatt-Aleu was supposed to be in Chile when the earthquake hit yesterday.

The Coronado High School boys varsity soccer coach, who moved to San Diego in 1989, had plans to visit his family last week, but after the Islanders qualified for a playoff game, he stayed to coach the team.

“I heard that everything fell off the shelves, even artwork fell off the walls,” he said. “It’s scary. But earthquakes happen quite a bit in Chile, so they’re strict with building codes like they are in California.”

Though Hiatt-Aleu escaped the disaster, he hasn’t heard from his family in Santiago, Valparaiso and Concepcion, cities near the epicenter.

“Everybody is there,” he said. “My aunts, uncles and cousins. My mom’s the only one who lives in San Diego. I haven’t been able to get a hold of anybody. I can’t get through on the phone and no one has responded to my e-mails.”

San Diego businesswoman Danielle Gano was among those trying to connect with family in Chile through Facebook and Twitter, but as of yesterday she had no luck.

Adrián Arancibia, a prominent Chilean immigrant in San Diego who founded the Taco Shop Poets, reached his extended family yesterday morning.

They live in Iquique, on the opposite side of the country from where the quake hit, and the writer and activist said they weren’t affected.

South Bay graphic designer Aliza Shalit had some success reaching her friends.

“I went to camp in Chile for two summers in a row when I was in high school.… It was very close to Concepcion,” she said.

“Most of the people I know are in Santiago, and the only way people seem to be able to contact them is via the Internet. Everyone there is fine. Lots of aftershocks.”

Arancibia and Hiatt-Aleu said Chile is better prepared for earthquakes than many countries, something Arancibia credits with limiting casualties and damage.

“Even though this is a tragedy, I’m relieved to know that at this point the number of people who died appears to be low in relation to the magnitude of the earthquake,” he said.

Arancibia, whose family immigrated to the United States in 1976, spent yesterday afternoon at his parents’ Bonita home, where they watched television directly from Chile. He said he also went online to check the Facebook pages of his cousins who live in Chile.

Hiatt-Aleu, however, had to put aside his attempts to reach family because of last night’s playoff game against South Bay’s Montgomery High School.

“I think it will affect me a little bit,” he said. “It’s going to be a little bit emotional.”